


Dominion

by Cinnamongirl



Category: Dragon Age - All Media Types, Dragon Age II
Genre: Biting, Fluff and Angst, Hickeys, Insecurity, Jealousy, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-05-23
Updated: 2014-05-23
Packaged: 2018-01-26 07:00:41
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,295
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1679027
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Cinnamongirl/pseuds/Cinnamongirl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Written for the prompt: "Anders' LI likes to give him hickeys, in places seen and unseen. He likes the idea of leaving traces of himself on his lover, of their activities/lovemaking, and even the idea that others may see and think that he's already taken. </p><p>Except that come morning (or the aftermath/afterglow), the marks are always gone, seemingly healed without even a conscious thought by Anders; the idea of being branded, even like this, even by someone he may love or respect, has always made him extremely uncomfortable, and so he has taken, a long time ago, to erase them. </p><p>Cue LI angst. Why do this? Is he ashamed of us? Is he ashamed of me? Is there someone else? etc. Maybe the LI tries to reacertain their link by trying to have even more sex and marking him even more, only to see Anders react positively as usual... and then simply healing himself after. Maybe he tries to tell himself that it's nothing, but it gnaws at him. Basically, Anders' LI is insecure."</p>
            </blockquote>





	Dominion

**Author's Note:**

> This Hawke and Anders are in no way connected with Motherfucking Sorcerer!Hawke and Anders.

Hawke and Anders were a month into their relationship before they actually saw each other naked two days in a row. The second day was affectionate and passionate and wonderful and all the other things that new-relationship sex is (especially with Anders, _holy fuck_ ) but Hawke still had enough presence of mind to notice that Anders' skin looked weirdly clear. He vividly remembered biting him the day before, and digging his fingernails in hard enough to leave scratches, but Anders' body didn't show any signs of what they'd done. Hawke decided that he probably hadn't been as rough as he thought, and he put it out of his mind. 

Two months later, they somehow went to bed at the same time, both had enough energy to have sex before falling asleep, AND woke up together in the morning. Hawke remembered that Anders' neck had had at least three pretty dark hickeys on it the night before, but there was no sign of them when they got up. This time, he was sure. Anders was very pale and marks like that just didn't go away on their own. Maybe he healed them after Hawke fell asleep because he was embarrassed about people at the clinic seeing? As sexy as it was to think of Anders walking around in public after being marked by him, Hawke understood that he might be self-conscious. 

 

As their relationship progressed, Hawke noticed that it kept happening. Any time that Anders got a mark or bruise during sex, whether or not it was deliberate, it was always gone by the next day. It didn't matter if the mark was somewhere covered up by clothes. Even on the rare days when Anders didn't go out anywhere, his skin was always completely intact. Hawke thought it might be a mage thing at first, before he remembered all the scars on Merrill's arms from where she cut herself, and the skinned knees and bruises that Bethany always seemed to have when they were growing up. Maybe it was an effect of being possessed? Hawke wanted to ask Anders about it, but he couldn't figure out how to do it without sounding weird and paranoid. He tried to bring it up in a subtle way while they were in bed together. “Hey, does it bother you when I bite you or give you hickeys or stuff like that?”

“Oh, it doesn't bother me at all!” Anders said brightly. “I like it a little rough. I'll make sure to tell you if you ever do something I don't want.”

That was good to hear, but it made Hawke even more confused. He tried not to think about it. He and Anders were both gone so often that any time together was precious, and he didn't want to waste it on concerns about Anders' skin.

 

After the fight with the Arishok, Hawke found himself at home a lot more. He had been badly injured and Anders almost never left his side while he was recovering. It was the most time they had ever spent together. After Hawke had recuperated, Anders went back to his clinic and the Mage Underground and Hawke found himself with a lot more free time. He still had bullshit nobility obligations and he tried to check on the Bone Pit regularly, but he suddenly had a lot less to do. Now that he wasn't gone all the time, he realized how much time Anders actually spent away from home. The disappearing hickeys started to actually make Hawke uneasy. It wouldn't be difficult at all for Anders to get away with cheating on him. Hawke didn't have any other reason to be suspicious, but why else would Anders be in a hurry to get rid of marks on his thighs, or anywhere else that nobody should be able to see?

The uncomfortable feeling wouldn't leave Hawke. He realized that he was getting more rough with Anders and making sure to mark him in some way every time they had sex. They both enjoyed it, but Hawke knew that he wanted to prove to the world--and most importantly to Anders himself--that Anders was _his_. He felt possessive and insecure. It was an ugly feeling and it was eating him up inside.

 

After one night of some pretty excellent sex, Anders fell asleep quickly but Hawke couldn't sleep. He lay there in bed, alternately staring at Anders and at the ceiling. He had a really great boyfriend who hadn't given him any reason not to trust him, but he couldn't seem to stop worrying and just enjoy the relationship. 

Suddenly, he noticed that Anders was stirring. With his eyes still closed, Anders moved his hand to a spot on his shoulder where Hawke had bitten him earlier. A purple bruise had already formed. There was a soft glow, and then the bruise was gone. Hawke realized that Anders had been healing himself this whole time, apparently while he was unconscious. He poked Anders to see if he was really asleep, but he just groaned and rolled over.

Hawke wasn't sure how to interpret this. Anders didn't seem to mind being marked, but for some reason he couldn't handle _staying_ marked. Was he embarrassed about their relationship? He resolved to ask him about it in the morning. 

 

The next day, Hawke knew that he needed to bring up the subject but he wasn't sure how. He opened and closed his mouth a few times before finally saying, “Er, can I talk to you about something?”

Anders smiled. “Of course, love, anything.”

That made Hawke feel worse. He took a deep breath. “Well, I bit your shoulder pretty hard last night and you seemed to like it, but I noticed you healing it while you were sleeping. What's going on?”

“I thought you'd be uncomfortable if I did it in front of you, but it was on my mind when I fell asleep and I guess I just healed it unconsciously.”

“But why heal marks like that at all? Who's going to see your _shoulder_?”

Anders looked down and away slightly. “It really bothers me if I know that my body is marked. It seems too much like being branded.”

 _Oh. Of course._ Hawke hadn't even thought of that. He felt like an asshole.

Anders must have noticed that Hawke was upset, because he quickly said, “Don't worry, I enjoy it when you bite me like that and it isn't any bother to just heal myself afterward.”

Hawke wasn't sure if he felt better or worse after their conversation. It was good to have an answer, and he was reassured that Anders wasn't being unfaithful. Still, he'd been holding on to the fantasy of Anders walking around everywhere with marks on his body that Hawke had given him. He now knew for sure that this would never happen. He felt even more guilty for being disappointed about it.

* * *

Some time after that, Hawke manged to catch Anders when he was at home for a few hours. “I have a gift for you,” he said, handing him a small package.

Anders opened it. “Oh, a ring! But this one doesn't seem to have any enchantments. What does it do?”

“It's actually just a regular ring. I got one for myself, too. I was thinking we could wear them? We obviously can't get married, but I like the idea of a visible sign of our relationship. What do you think?”

“I like it!” Anders slipped the ring on his hand and smiled as he looked at it. “Thank you, this means a lot.”

Hawke kissed him. There was a warm sensation in his chest. _Anders is really mine and I am his,_ he thought. It was a good feeling.


End file.
